Brit cycle advocate gets New Year gong

Hugh McClintock, chairman of Pedals, the Nottingham cycle advocacy group - he's also a research academic, an expert on cycle use - was awarded an MBE "for services to cycling" in the Queen's New Year's honours list. There are two such award periods per year, with roughly 1500 Sirs, Lords of the Garter, CBEs, OBEs and others created each time.

The rest of the New year's honours list is dominated by rugby stars and civil servant desk wallahs. There are no gongs for world champion cyclist Nicole Cooke or track champ Bradley Wiggins.

Perhaps one reason for the lack of honours for cycle-sport stars and unsung heroes from cycling in general is the lack of nominations from the world of cycling.

Back in July, BikeBiz.com suggested readers should nominate cycle notables via a Cabinet Office link provided. Whether anybody did any such nominating will never be known, the honours system is kept entirely behind closed doors.

The next round of honours awards will be in June.

According to the Cabinet Office "individuals may be nominated for an honour by anyone, and we encourage neighbours, work colleagues etc to put forward those they admire for their achievements. Nominations must be made on the form designed for this purpose."

Who's eligible for the gongs? According to the Cabinet Office, almost anybody:

"Teachers, nurses, doctors; arts practitioners and administrators; actors, musicians, painters etc; sports men and women; industrialists and trade unionists; scientists; journalists and broadcasters; diplomats and those giving service to United Kingdom interests abroad; the Armed Forces; but by far the largest number of awards go to those providing services to their local communities, mainly volunteers."